Books, movies, and television shows are all familiar with the heart wrenching job of showcasing cancer to views and readers alike. In most recent years, “My Sister’s Keeper”, “Chasing Life”, “The Fault in Our Stars”, and the list goes on. These books and film have captured the life changing diagnosis of cancer and how it affects not only the patient but family and friends as well. The CW recently launched a new show, “Life Sentence”. While indeed, it’s another show about cancer, it’s not what you think. Here’s a preview of what season 1 aims to teach us.
Some Cancers Can Be Cured
In the mentioned examples of television, film, and books, most of those cancer cases don’t end with a cure. These stories end in tears and heartache, with the overall comfort of knowing the characters are no longer suffering from their illness.
This is where Life Sentence comes in with a twist. In the pilot episode, we learn that the main character– Stella Abbott played by Lucy Hale– was once diagnosed with terminal cancer, but now has been cured after a clinical trial. In her 8 years of a terminal diagnosis, Stella meets satisfaction. She prepares to life live to its fullest until her nearing last day alive.
Enter plot twist– After being a patient in a clinical trial, Stella is cured of cancer and can now life a long happy life with her new husband and family. Thus, the entire storyline of this show is about her coping with life after accepting her terminal illness, and how she meets a new found freedom in living. Being cured of cancer isn’t as joyful and easy as one would think.
Cancer Survivors Still Endure a Sense of Sadness
Without giving too many spoilers, in early aired episodes viewers learn that Stella was the only patient out of her trial to not only receive a cure, but she was the only one who had survived. As a patient with cancer, you meet other cancer patients, hear their stories, meet their families and more. You become invested. Although there is much joy in celebrating being cured from cancer, Life Sentence aims to show the underlying emotions.
We see Stella heavily weighed down by guilt and confusion. Why her? Why was she the only one to survive? For every ounce of happiness in cancer survival, there is an essence of sadness as well.
Life is Still Worth Celebrating
In each episode of Life Sentence we learn that Stella’s family had hid the bad things from her. They put on a show to the forefront in order for her to believe she was living this amazing life as she fought cancer. However, once her cure is announced, she slowly learns the details of what they’ve been hiding.
Life Sentence is so far an incredible perspective of life beyond cancer. What do survivors endure after they’re cured? The answer has viewers watching anxiously each week with season 1 well underway.